Roma Camp 5th and Final Day

Four wonderful days had passed by so quickly that it felt we just arrived the day before. Fifth day was finally here and it was time for us to say goodbye; but before it happened, we had a great graduation planned for the whole team.

Last breakfast of the Roma Camp.

Before our graduation began, we practiced one last time on all our favourite songs: Our God, Jesus In The Boat, We Can Trust Him, Christ Arose and Someone Around You. The children loved these songs and actions, we invited some of them to lead us on the last day.

Each one of us also had a "Spa" time to clean up: boys gelled their hair and girls dressed up and put on makeup.

When it was time, we all walked up to our "activity hut". First singing session...

Our opening ...

We had four awards: "Most Excellent" and "Most Responsible" each with boys and girls.

At the end, we handed out the graduation certificates to each one of them.

Surprise, stamps had been collected throughout the camp each day based on their behaviour. These stamps were used to exchange for prizes at the very end. Obviously, the more well behaved and improved a child was, the more stamps he/she would collect to exchange for prizes.

It was sad to say goodbye, but may this camp bring them closer to the Christ. HOLD ONTO JESUS!

Day 12: can't believe we only have 2 more days left!

As I write this I'm lying in bed under the weather. A few of us have developed some coughs and I've definitely taken for the worse. My voice is gone as well as my energies. So I will keep this short before my meds kick in.Today was the big dating & sex talk for the teens. We had some great discussions and sharing! The workshops been going great but model airplanes is defiantly proven difficult for the younger kids!

Throughout this week we've introduced 2 characters in our big group time, dr.evil-mcEvil-stein (Ernest) and Capt. Hero (Tuck). Because Crystal and Ernest is in the staff retreat on Wednesday we improv a kidnap video into the skit! Have a look here:[youtube width="600" height="450"]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U68pAM2EX0o[/youtube]

Team knitting a bracelet for one of the teens!!

Day 11: 2nd day of discipleship camp

Today in our discipleship class we taught about authority through David and Saul. We had some good discussions and reflection time!

During the afternoon we also visited some of the kids from last weeks camp!

Tonite we also visited Valery's home for a Ukrainian BBQ!!! Best BBQ ever! We also had a great time fellowshiping with each other!

As we left for home, we found out our van ran out of diesel.  Solution? Have the other van tow us to the gas station with both van full of people lol!! It was an exciting ride for sure!!!

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Day 10: after the storm...

Today started off a little sad with my MacBook fried during last nites thunderstorm! I will be updating from my phone till I return. But I'm determined to still take lots of pictures and videos, just may take more time on my phone!Today was our first day of our discipleship camp for both teens and children. We also have our first session of soccer, drama, and flight! At the end of the day the kids luv the workshops and model planes were flying all over the place ( broken pieces too!!).

During dinner we also celebrated Bin & Anna's 7th anniversary!!! That cake is awesome!!!

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Roma Camp 4th Day

Fourth day had arrived so quickly, we had already starting to miss them as they would all be going back home the next day. The fourth and last bible story of the program was True Love with Jesus being our Good Shepherd. The children were great and wonderfully behaved, and most of them were eager to participate in the skit too.

They were getting to be so good with the songs and we invited some of them to join us leading.

Skit was about how shepherd protected his sheep in the sheep pen.

After the bible lesson, we had craft time on making a pillow case to take home.

In between, we fitted in a "Mission Impossible". The goal was a competition between boys' and girls' rooms; whoever chose to accept the mission would clean up their rooms as a team and the cleanest floor (boys vs. girls) would win a prize.

Not only their rooms, they cleaned up the hallway and staircases too.

At lunch, we had a arm wrestling match for after meal entertainment!

In the afternoon, the group relaxed to enjoy the Jesus film in Hungarian or Russian (the languages Roma children more fluent in).

Workshop topic was on sex education.

At night, we were divided into small groups for bedside fellowship. The whole team treasured this moment as this was the time to get to know each children up close and personal. It also allowed them to open and share their stories. We prayed and spread the Gospel message with them. IT was a wonderful moment with Christ between us to show these children His love.

Day 9: Day of Rest

Today is Sunday and as a team we decided to free up any meetings and rest (play) for the day. The morning started off with worship in which Colin shared with the congregations there! We also sang "I'll Fly Away" with the kids as a presentation! This will be our last Sunday here, so we treasure our time worshipping with our Ukrainian brothers and sisters!

Today is also Ernest's 24th Birthday!!! Nadia (Vasya's mom) made a cake for him!!! For the rest of the day Ernest was showered with gifts from the kids at HOM!!

We all were super excited for the cake!!! And also for Ernest's birthday!!!

In the afternoon we spend time hanging out with the kids!!

Оля made Ernest a bracelet!! Knitted in one day!!! Actually she knitted more than one!! Very talented!!

During the afternoon the boys decided to go fishing and Daniel decided to join them. The bike trip to the fishing hole proved a bit too treacherous as Daniel fell and made a huge gash on his shin. After we patch him up, we decided he need to go to the hospital to get it look at (stitches) as it was really deep. Ivan (Vasya's father), Mark, and Colin went with him. Daniel shared it was one of the scariest moment in his life as nobody (i.e.: no translator!) was allowed to be with him in the room. But the doctor took good care of him and he was back at HOM within the hour! He is going to head back to the hospital early tomorrow morning for a quick check up!

For the rest of the evening we freely hung out with the kids and it was an absolutely blast! Eventhough its 33c today it was an awesome day for all of us!!

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Day 8: Around town and the Hospital

Saturday morning started with us visiting the city center!But first for Pastor Kenny, to let you know I've delivered your gift to your Ukrainian God-son, Andrew!! Proud MSC fan, just in time for Hungarian GP this weekend! (For those of you who follow F1!)

... The river which the city is named after.

After lunch we headed out of town to the children hospital.

... most of us slept the whole way through...

At the hospital we visited the abandoned baby ward.... Precious children that we know we may never see again, but we pray over each of them, that they will one day cross path with our Lord Jesus Christ.

It was very difficult to leave that room...

The doctor we visited proudly showed us a brand new donated equipment!!

After we left the hospital, we made a quick visit to the castle!

Today was a easier day as we end off the day with a big group meeting to get started on next week. We wanted to spend Sunday resting and playing with the kids as much as we can!!

Day 7: Last day of the VBS camp!

Day 7 was the last day of our VBS camp.  It was another hot 30c+ day. They spend the morning in the different station (Games/Craft/Science) and in the afternoon everyone headed to the church for a parent presentation.

In the craft station...

In the game station they played shadow tag...

In the science station, they get "bubbled" :)

After we got to the church we had a rehearsal! They sang all the 5 songs from the camp, all the memory verses as well as a skit.

Skit...

And Courtney shared her testimony!

At the end of the day we had a big group photo...

before refreshment time with everyone!

kids loved the chips...

As the afternoon ended, we took a lot of photos with the kids before they leave! It's so hard to say good bye, the team members had a lot of trouble watching them leave. This week went by soooo fast!!!!

... This photo had a funny story on its own. Ernest was initially standing beside him, but the mother switched Ernest out for Courtney :)

He's a great kid with lots of potiental!!

Tonite was also the night we finally get to see the Roma team again!!! Their camp had also ended that afternoon!! We spend some time trading stories...

... before a massive birthday dinner for 4!!

There was a lot of cakes, and they were all extremely tasty!!!!

Last but not least, HOM also welcome a new child that very day!! Victoria!!

After dinner as everyone was playing and enjoying each other's company, Vasya's youngest daughter, Anna, fell off the monkey bar and broke her arm badly. The doctor's initial assestment was that a surgery was need asap due to the amount of damage, they tried to moved the bones back into place before making another x-ray in the morning before the surgery next day. We prayed and request prayers from everyone that night. This morning Vasya told us that the doctor was surprise to find that her bones was moved back into place perfectly, the doctor say it never happened before that they can move the bones manually back in cases like this!! So now Anna have no need for the surgery!! Praise God for His healing hand!!

A glimpse into our Week 1 VBS camp...

Today was our last day of VBS and this post was going to be about our Day 7 here, but unfortunately my sniffly noses is telling me I need to rest asap. But to make up for my lack of update tonite here's a bunch of clips I've been gathering this week in hopes of giving our friends and supporters a more vibrant & personal perspective on our mission trip. Here's a quick teaser on my first week here (July 20th - 27th):[vimeo width="600" height="337"]https://vimeo.com/46514232[/vimeo]

Day 6: Everyone agreed it was an awesome day at VBS camp!

The morning started with a sad note as the Norwegian couple departed from HOM after breakfast.

We can already imagine how hard our farewells will be...

Today's theme is "No matter what happens... Trust God!" It's about Jesus and the resurrection!!

Courtney led the lesson for the day!!

Which include an activity on a cross!

In the science station they made a butterfly! Pretty cool!!

There was also some emotional sharing as well as memory verse in that station!

In the craft station they changed their lesson plan last night to better accommodate the kids here! Thanks to Solevig!

In the game station, the kids played a game about overcoming obstacles while blindfolded!!!

Colin revealled his true identity...

Eventhough today was sprinkling, the kids still had a blast outside!

At the beginning of the afternoon we played a game of telephone charade...

.... teen helpers included...

... and then it was our turn... lol.

We sang a lot of song today! We got little Vasya to help lead everyone in the song!!! SOOO cute...

As well as other teens!!

The kids had a great time singing!

At the end of the day, instead of having free time we split the group to practice for tomorrow's presentation at the church!!! A small group for skit, and the big group for songs!

Before the kids left the camp we had watermelon and awesome cookies for snack!!!

... and a watermelon eating contest ensure...

Roma Camp 3rd Day

Wow! Praise the Lord. The camp was on the 3rd day with a packed tight fun loving God program schedule. Our program was True Riches on how Jesus fed over 5000 people with just 2x fishes and 5x breads.

After our singing and program lessons, we walked up to our usual outdoor spot and had a great time doing the craft.

Jeff was paying close attention on making this beautiful nature craft too!

We broke into small groups for lesson wrap up.

The lunch was great as always. Team was joking that we might gain weight after this camp.

The plan for the afternoon was to swim in the river, obviously the children loved the idea; they had been asking for it since Day 1.

It was not long until they all jumped into the river too.

Anna and Bin, smile!

At night, we had a Passion Skit planned with Altar Call following after. The cloud and thunder storm were moving in but we still proceeded ahead.

(Stage Setup and Rehearsal)

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The thunder storm did show up and it was raining really hard right before and right after our program. During the Passion Skit, God set up a perfect stage of thunder and lightning. It was amazing. We all headed back to the camp safety without getting much wet.

An unplanned drama entertainment: Nature vs iPhone.

Sasha (in blue T-skirt), one of our four wonderful translators / leaders, had been fasting with only water for four straight days, we all agreed that was something we can learn from.

Roma Camp 2nd Day

Day two program started out wonderful singing with all the children. They really enjoyed the music and loved the actions. The topic of that day was on True Peace with story on Jesus calming the storm.A short hiking distance from the camp was a lovely area where we always had our craft and wrap up sessions.

During the Game session, we had the perfect game for this hot summer day (~30 deg C) - Water War. It was amazing how wet they could get even with just a small plastic cup. Extreme fun time could be found in a small cup.

As always, they enjoyed the craft session a lot.

Close by us was a nice nature area, we hiked up to the forest area and had our group photo. Guess what some of the children found? Wild mushrooms. Too bad we cannot cook them, otherwise we would borrow the recipe from HOM.

What's better than having a beautiful sunny day and do craft and colouring outdoor. They loved making beats, including all the boys!

Day 5: An extremely hot wednesday at the VBS camp.

Hot weather is definitely here today! Probably the hottest I've ever experience especially when we were all in our meeting hall!! I've never sweated so much ever!! Today our theme was "No Matter what people do ... Trust God!"

Eric was leading the bible lesson today.

For the games station we spend a little bit of time in the field for a version of a tag game!

During free time a lot of kids (and us) hung out under neath the tarp to avoid the sun!

We also found out Daniel can jump super high!!!

At the start of the afternoon we had some games and singing in the meeting hall. Our shirt was absolutely drenched!! The fan had bearly any effects!! But the kids still loved the games we played!

All the leaders ignored the heat during singing! Their energy for the kids never diminished!!!

Because of the scorching heat we did some big group games with water!!

Younger kids got to hang out underneath the tarp for another game!

While the older one played Pig, Squeak, and Wilbur.... with water.

After the camp was over, we head back to the "lake" from yesterday! This time nearly our whole team plus a few more kids went!!

The opposite side of the lake is the cliff jump. It was a very difficult swim for me to the other side...

When we got back to HOM, we were treated to a really tasty meal!! (Below is a chicken dish!!!)

Everyone was super excited for it!!

Did we mention today is also Оля's Birthday!!!!

After dinner we had an all out soccer match (meaning with proper foot gears for those who have one). As we played a massive thunderstorm rolled in...

When the thunderstorm hit, it took out our temporary tarp over the pavement!! (We have vids). We tried to savage what we can but the downpour was incredible. However God use this chain of event to allow our Norwegian friend Solevig to hang out with us who in turns solved a few of our lesson plan changes for the next day!! We had prayed before the dinner for the problems we were facing and God delivered that every night. Awesome!!!! But please do continue to pray for us as tomorrow there's a quite a few big lesson plan changes as well as the thunderstorm that is forecast for tomorrow!!!!

Day 4: HOM VBS camp 2nd day progress!

Today started off with a fun note as it is Artyom's 8th birthday!! We sang him the birthday song and he received many gifts!!

The day started with some worries as we found out Ernest had probably suffered a heat stroke from yesterday and he is also leading the bible lesson for today too! He rested any time he could during breaks and free time. By the end of the day he was feeling much better, but it definitely gave us a scare!

Flash made an exceptional performance today!!

Today's story is Jesus and Lazarus!! Our helpers acted out today's story!

Tuck Yuen lead the kids in games together! A version of "What time is it Mr.Wolf?" But before we played he had created this epic background story for the game!!

This year I also brought along a tiny video camera to capture as many moments as I can. Hopefully I will have something to share after the trip.

In the craft station they made an amazing prayer journals! After the day ended many kids came up to me proudly pointing to their journal!!

In the science station they made.... ROCKETS!!!!!! This was a HUGE hit with everyone including adults!!!

Lunch was super tasty today!!

It turns out today is Vasya's younger brother's Wedding!!! They came by the centre to take some pictures with Vasya and his mother as they couldn't make it to the event because of our camp! I gladly play wedding photog for them :)

Flowers from the bride!!

The afternoon program started with some singing and Ernest finished the day's bible lesson in style! We were all surprised by the energy and enthusiasm he had!! God had sustain his health throughout the day and we are all super thankful!!

In the afternoon we also played some big group games!!

...Run Eric Run!!!

Everyone had a great time under the sun! ...35c I am guessing?

Everyone was looking for snack time!!

At the end of the day the we passed out their prayer journals and their rocket materials!!!

During the late afternoon, Eric, Daniel, and Courtney left with a few older boys to the stream where they gather drinking water!! They treasure the time they spend with the boys as they learned much about them and their characters.

After they returned a few of us left for a swim in a quarry that was flooded ~20 yrs ago, this 20-40m deep man-made "lake" was exactly what we needed in the scorching heat. There was also a 12m cliff jump at one side of the lake!! We compared the lake to Lake Louise!!

Later in the evening we all got a chance to visit the HOM kids in their rooms!

Birthday boy with his new toys!

... along with the chocolate our team gave him!

We are already planning when we can come back and hang out with them longer! (we were a bit early and they were in the mist of getting ready for shower)

Overall its been an eventful day! We learned we needed to manage our energy throughout this week and watch out for the varying weather. Tomorrow is supposedly just as hot but also with rain!

• Please pray that God will give us relive with the weather and sustain our bodies. It's 2Am right now and rain had started to sprinkle down.
• Pray for continue recovery for Ernest as well as Daniel as he may have a slight skin reaction to something. And also for Crystal as her skin is taking a toll in this temperature.
• Pray for wisdom to adjust to any changes due to weather!
• Pray for the kids here, as we get to know them more, our hearts goes out to them. Their hardship and challenges are beyond what most of us will ever experience. We pray the Good News will give them hope in something far greater and stronger than anything this world has thrown at them.

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Roma Camp 1st Day (Pics)

God Beautiful Provision - Site for Roma Camp!

Preparing Program Room before arrival.

Game and Activities Area - they love to play soccer in this tennis court.

Registration and Brief Orientation.

Lunch time!

Our Camp Title - Hold onto Jesus.

Singing Time.

Big Team Game Time.

Craft Time - started the first day with Bandana.

Our Prayer Journal.

Divide into small groups for discussion and lesson wrap up.

During lesson.

Day 3: HOM VBS camp started!!

Here comes a very, very long post!! Today is the first day of the VBS Camp at HOM!! After group devotion time we had breakfast with the Roma team and all the translators and helpers!

One of HOM's wonderful chef!!

The Roma team left the centre to their camp site!!

... as registrations for the 78 kids begins! We split the kids into 3 age groups!

We got started with an introduction to the camp and the team!

Through the first part of the morning we did some singing and shared today's theme "No Matter Who You Are... Trust God!"

We also introduced our VBS character, FLASH, who is played by Daniel!!

Colin led today's bible story!! The story of the Roman centurion and Jesus!!

We let one of the kids be a centurion!!

... with her own troops!

After the morning activities, the kids had a bit of free time before lunch!!!

We spend our time playing with all the kids, whether its soccer, racket sports, or the sandbox. We also saw some familiar faces from previous years!

The kids drew some amazing stuff with their chalks!!

Josef wrote something special at the gate! Guess what it means!!!

Daniel wanted a "self portrait" from Ernest....

After lunch we gathered for some more songs!

Here is the game station for day 1! (I am part of the game station team so most pictures will be from here) Each of the outer group was suppose to try and catch the flying ball with a hulu hoop! They catcher team were suppose to follow a leader in catching the ball...

... It's harder than it looks... especially launching the ball...

At the end of the day Colin did a game show in his conclusion!! Guess which can fly? And guess what he's holding lol!!

Afterward the kids came outside for snacks before they head home!

... We had some too!!

Then it was time to say good bye for the day! Their vans are here!

For the rest of the afternoon / evening we hung out with the kids!

The forecast for this coming week is a bit uncertain as there maybe a huge rain storm coming midweek as well as a heatwave! Tomorrow we are expecting 35c!!!!!! The HOM staff decided to build a temporary tarp over the pavement area incase of rain!! Daniel helped kept the tarp up as they moved a playground device under it to hold it up!

As I mentioned before we are expecting some extreme weathers with the rain mid week and heatwave! Please pray that God will sustain us and give us relive from whatever weather that may come upon us!!

Day 2: Worship and final Pre-Camp preparations!!

Sunday started off early with us leaving the hostel at 8:45AM for breakfast at the HOM centre. We enjoyed a delicious breakfast which includes Daniel's (and Robyn's) favourite ham & cheese sandwich:

After breakfast, everyone was ready to head to church for worship.

I always look forward to sunday service here, the experience is hard to describe, even though we have our language barrier, all of us  treasure the time to worship with our brothers and sisters in Ukraine. Did I mention their choirs (youth and adult) are awesome (see past posts)??

As we got on the van to return to HOM after service, we notice we were missing a few people... It seem they didn't hear us leaving lol...

The guys in the backseat really enjoyed their ride together. But Ernest is now forever know as "Jackie Chong/Chan".

We arrived back at HOM for lunch!

We also met the Norwegian lady who lead the support effort of HOM from Norway. It's wonderful to finally meet the lady that led the support of some many people here in Ukraine!

After lunch we were going to get started with setup, but we couldn't help but play with the kids. Soccer!

Soccer is not just a game, but an invaluable opportunity to get to know the kids!!

After soccer everyone sat down for some snacks.

Friends are quickly made!!!

After the game, we had a meeting with the HOM VBS helpers! These are the HOM kids who are 14+!! Awesome helpers!!

Afterward we spend some time teaching the kids the songs we will be singing throughout the HOM VBS camp!

At the same time, the ROMA camp briefed the translators about their week ahead!!

The teams then converge to do final setup and packing!

Dinner was cabbage rolls!!! It seem to be a tradition to have Cabbage rolls on a Sunday here. I ate like 6.... and I don't like vegetables... it's that good!!!

After dinner, our teams gathered to prayer for both teams as from tonite on we won't be staying at the same place for the rest of the trip. As the ROMA team went back to the hostel, the HOM team settle downed at the guest house here at the centre. We spend the rest of night running through tomorrow's day as well as our devotion!

Tomorrow will be the first day of camp!! We (both teams) are super excited but we realize we need a lot of your prayers as we know many new challenges will pop up and we know God will continue to show us how He is the one at work and we are just along for the ride. I am looking forward to tomorrow, to see how amazing He is going to be for the children of Ukraine!

As I will be staying with the HOM team, Stephen will be updating us on the ROMA team's progress!! GO ROMA CAMP!!!!!

Day 1: 27 hrs, 4 countries, our mission started off with a splash.

Friday morning at 7:30AM Our team gathered together at YYC for the departure. We quickly checked in our luggages and found out our whole group's ticket has been pre printed / checked in ready to roll! We spend some time at the chapel with our prayer warriors, friends and families in prayers. We knew its going to be a long trip and knew we had to rely on God to sustain us through the long travel time. At around 9AM we left for the gate, our flight itinary, Calgary to Toronto, 2 hr layover, Toronto to Frankfurt, 6 hr layover, Frankfurt to Budapest. By the time we got to Budapest, everyone was tired and confused over when to sleep. The weather in Budapest was cloudy with a nice breeze, it was a huge blessing as sitting in a hot van for x hrs is very draining. As we got onto our 2 van we also met a Norwegian, Solvig, who is heading to HOM also! As we departed in our vans, we presumed our route will be similar to previous years, from Hungary right into Ukraine. But as it turns out our drivers took us on a brand new route through Slovakia into Ukraine! The trip was a few hrs longer but with the nice weather it was a real scenic treat (as well as extra nap time). After a few moment of getting lost and low gas warning we arrived at HOM at around 9:30PM! We were welcomed at the gate by the staff and kids / teens at HOM! Ohhh how we missed them!!! After a yummy dinner our whole team left for the brand new Hostel HOM just finished (the day before). We were all going to stay here for 1 night and then the HOM VBS team will move back to the HOM site while the ROMA team will leave for its camp. As we all started to unpack and rest, we encountered our next challenge! The 2nd floor shower started flooding, we quickly scrambled the troops and with quick thinking and skills, Bin and Vasya got it under controlled. As I write this all of us has just finished showering and are finally, truly, resting. 26hrs of travel plus a plumbing challenge. God sure do has a sense of humour! But He has definitely sustained us! Through a few sickness, long travels and extra challenge, God has shown His presence here in our mist and I can't wait to see more of what He has in stored for us!! So now I must sleep, I don't know what time it is, but I know tomorrow's going to be a long day with worship, setup, last min. material shoppings and etc.!!! Stayed tune for the next update!!!Eric ready for flight

Prayer time at the chapel:

Onboard reading...

Stephen reading up on his lesson plans...

Arriving at Frankfurt...

6 hr layover at Frankfurt... (photo is 20% staged, guess which part :)

Colin practicing the songs at the gate.

The A-Team van at the Budapest airport.

Inside the B-Team van!!

Hanging out in Slovakia...

Meal at HOM after we arrived!!

A view of our shower incident.

Work Day!

Tonite is our Mission Work Night! Our team along with our prayer warriors worked on our material preparations. We cut, taped, laminated, and laughed through the night! We want to thank everyone for their support, we are so excited to bring the good news to the kids of Ukraine! 2 weeks! 2 Weeks to go!!!!

Another week 2 workshop prep!!

One of the week 2 workshops is on Flight, which includes a bit of science and hands on activities like a challenging balsa wood model plane. We hope this will not only teach them the science behind flight, but also God's amazingly intricate design in birds and us.As you can see, each of our groups run through our respective lesson plans to iron out any issues and in our case, we learned (and revised) a lot of our plans as we built our crazy plane. This is going to be awesome!!